


my love, my healer

by sunflower_writes



Series: Tumblr Prompts [3]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Caring Evan "Buck" Buckley, Eddie Diaz Needs a Hug (9-1-1 TV), Gen, Soft Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Tree Enthusiast!Eddie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-27
Updated: 2020-08-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:48:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26147422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunflower_writes/pseuds/sunflower_writes
Summary: “I remember you mentioning that you had a Kumquat tree growing up, so I got one for you..” he smiled, looking up at Eddie. “I also got Chris a blueberry bush because he said it was his favorite fruit.” Buck was a blushing mess and Eddie watched as it spread down his neck.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Series: Tumblr Prompts [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1884784
Comments: 12
Kudos: 139





	my love, my healer

**Author's Note:**

> prompt request from tumblr

Eddie always found peace in nature.

He’s the type of person to just sit down and watch the rain pouring outside, listening to it thud against the window as he curled up in a blanket on the couch. He likes the smell of wet grass, the blooming of flowers in the springtime, the crunching of leaves under his feet during the fall time. 

But Eddie loves trees the most. 

It’s an unexplainable thing really, his love for trees, but he knows it started in kindergarten.

It was earth day at school, his kindergarten teacher had everyone pick the seeds they wanted to plant beforehand and he chose citrus seeds that his teacher got from her Kumquat tree. He had his first field trip to the community garden that day, he got to plant his little seeds and he was ecstatic. When he got home he told his mom and he told his dad, he even got to call Abuela to tell her the good news and there may have been some tears. From both parties. 

Ever since then, Eddie has loved trees. 

He spent so much time going to check on his tree after that. He would beg his parents to take him all the time, but eventually settled on going at least twice a month and when his tree finally started sprouting tiny oranges, Eddie would tell anyone who would listen. 

It eventually became something Eddie used as an excuse to get out of the house and take a breath. He would go to the garden and just sit and watch as everyone picked the oranges, took pictures with it or of it—it was honestly something Eddie was really proud of. 

He met Shannon there. She was picking tomatoes and a few berries when Eddie saw her. They talked for a while, they went on a few dates, then eventually she got pregnant and Eddie found himself signing up for the army. 

Eddie’s hope had been to take Christopher to the community garden when he got older, but then Shannon left and he had to work three jobs just to keep him and Chris afloat. That left him with little to no time to spare until eventually he decided to move to LA and join the LAFD. 

He got his house, he was almost financially stable and he thought he would try to plant another Kumquat tree in his backyard. It didn’t work out for him. He tried again and still nothing, so when it wouldn’t grow the third time, Eddie stopped trying. He accepted that he had a black thumb, fully believing that plants could sense human emotions and maybe Eddie’s were just too much for the tree. 

He stopped feeling like himself after he got back from the war and if he was being honest, that messed with his head sometimes. So instead, he opted on just helping Abuela with her plants. 

After Shannon died, Eddie wanted nothing more than to be surrounded by nature and so he took a day for himself and went into the forest for a few hours and just sat there. He listened to the birds chirping, he listened to the buzzing of bugs around him, and he cried--everything he couldn’t let out in front of Christopher, he let out in the forest. Letting the trees swallow the sound of his broken cries, until eventually no sound came out. 

\--

Eddie doesn’t remember telling Buck about his love for trees or even that he planted one, but he knows Buck held on to that because the day he comes home from dropping off Christopher to go to camp, Buck is sitting in his front steps with a bag from the local farmers market and a smile on his face. 

“I remember you mentioning that you had a Kumquat tree growing up, so I got one for you..” he smiled, looking up at Eddie. “I also got Chris a blueberry bush because he said it was his favorite fruit.” Buck was a blushing mess and Eddie watched as it spread down his neck. 

“You know, if I knew any better, I’d say that Christopher put you up to this.” Eddie started, moving passed him to get into the house. “Which I do, because how else would you have known that it was a Kumquat tree I planted back then?” he questioned, giving Buck a squinted look, a playful smile growing on his lips. 

He let his mind wander, thinking about when he first arrived in LA and how many failed attempts he had when he tried to plant a Kumquat. He couldn’t help but think that it would be the same this time around. 

Eddie watched as Buck gave his best innocent look before his face broke into a large grin and he held his arms out, “ You caught me. He left special instructions for me yesterday.” Buck chuckled, shutting the door behind him. “He said he wanted a blueberry bush and you know I am weak against his puppy eyes, Eddie.” he defended, setting the things down on the kitchen table. 

Eddie shook his head, trying to hide the smile on his face, “Yeah, yeah, i’ve heard that one before Buckley.” he muttered as he handed him a beer. 

They spent a while talking after that until eventually Buck suggested they go plant the tree he brought, much to Eddie’s dismay. He didn’t want to plant the tree and get his hopes up again only to watch it fail, but he reluctantly followed Buck into the backyard. 

“..I haven’t been able to grow anything since I came back home..” Eddie stated after a while of silently digging beside Buck, “I tried when I first got the house, I went out and tried to plant seeds but I couldn’t grow them so I just stopped.” he sighed. 

“It’s okay, I’ll plant them. You can water them with Chris, he seems to have inherited the green thumb gene.” Buck assured him, bumping his shoulder against his. 

After a few weeks, the tree began to grow along with the berry bush. Christopher was ecstatic the day he got home from camp, letting out excited squeals as he walked over to the little garden Buck made. He reminded Eddie of himself and how excited he had been when he finally started seeing the progress of his tree, of how happy he had been. 

Over time, when Eddie needed to take a breath, he found himself sitting in the backyard. He sat there for hours at a time, just watching his tree with a small smile on his face, much like when he was younger and when it finally sprouted the tiny little oranges—he almost cried. Of joy, of happiness, but mostly because he didn’t realize how much he missed his tree and he had Buck to thank for that. 

Eddie knew what gardening had done for Buck, how much it had helped him get better after everything he had been through and him giving Eddie this tree was helped. He still went to therapy, did everything Frank asked him to try, but his tree was also there and it helped. 

He spent hours outside with Chris, picking the blueberries with him and pulling out any weeds he saw around his tree. He felt better, happier and a little bit at ease and if anyone noticed, they didn’t mention it.

Slowly, Eddie started feeling more like himself again. Like the Eddie before the war, before the damage, before the hurt—the Eddie who would run to his tree when he needed a few hours alone or just needed to breath for a moment. 

So when he saw that single white flower sitting on a tree branch at full display, Eddie couldn’t help but smile with tears in his eyes—because for the first time in a while, he felt okay and that flower somehow signified a new chapter in his life.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on tumblr @softboiidiaz


End file.
